In early 2023 around 200 asylum seekers were housed in the Muthu Hotel, Erskine, which lies a short drive west of Glasgow. Since then, every Sunday has seen a demonstration held outside the hotel by the right-wing fascist group Patriotic Alternative, who have also engaged in a campaign of disinformation targeting local residents where the asylum seekers were generally painted as thieves and rapists. This was countered by a weekly demonstration made up of various left-wing groups forming an anti-racism alliance. Both groups were kept apart by police, and exchanges were verbal rather than physical. On 20th April, the date of Hitlers birthday, Patriotic Alternative fractured and a new group called Homeland was launched, which was described as “a distillation” of the former’s “most dangerous elements into something harder, more serious and better organised”. Members of this new group continued to protest each Sunday outside the hotel, still countered by the anti-racism alliance.

On Sunday 21st May, Stand Up To Racism Scotland and the Scottish Trades Unions Congress held a joint rally in the grounds of the hotel in a show of solidarity and as a means of unification between both the hotel and the local residents. Over 400 supporters attended and came from as far afield as Dundee and Edinburgh. Speakers included union leaders, various faith leaders and refugee rights activists, and there was also a delegation of local residents from Erskine. These speeches were an education for me. In an era where there is so much negative rhetoric and misinformation from both the UK government and the mainstream media, it was good to hear the real details of the plight that asylum seekers endure today, especially at the hands of the UK immigration system. Rather than rapists and thieves, we have doctors, engineers and many others who could make a valuable contribution to any society.

The highlight of the day for the organisers was the fact that for the first time since the demonstrations started none of the fascists appeared, which meant that the large police presence could be stood down, leaving the activists and many of the asylum seekers who had joined the audience to end the event chatting and enjoying the delights of the largest barbeque I have ever seen.